Different Syntax’s

**penfold1992** · 03-26-2013, 10:03 AM

I am wondering why some syntax’s are different than others in regards to vba functions and if there is a difference between types, which one is faster,
Which is better and which is the best coding practise to use)

As an example I will use this code:

.Replace What:="cat", Replacement:="dog"

Why can I not write:

.Replace(“cat”, “dog”)

There appears to be some codes that use the syntax:

.Function(variable1, variable2,[variable3])

And others that use this syntax

.Function variable1:=a, variable2:=b, variable3:=c

I prefer to use the first but some functions only allow one way... can anyone explain this?

Thank you

**Norie** · 03-26-2013, 10:08 AM

Originally Posted by penfold1992:3173673

Why can I not write:

.Replace(“cat”, “dog”)

Eh, you can use that.

You would need to remove the brackets though and use proper quotes, not sure where they came from.

**JosephP** · 03-26-2013, 10:08 AM

your problem is simply the parentheses (and strange quote marks)-you can write either

.Replace "cat", "dog"

or

.Replace What:="cat", Replacement:="dog"

with any function in vba you can pass arguments by name or position. if there are a lot of optional arguments before the one you want to use, named arguments are simpler as well as being much easier to read and maintain

**penfold1992** · 03-26-2013, 11:21 AM

why do some have parenthesis and some dont? (the strange quote marks was because my gf posted the message because i cant post at work, well now I can... argh long story dont worry XD )

Range("A1").
Sheets("Sheet1").
Format(Month, "00")
IfDate(Now)

these all have parenthesis yet there are also some that dont? what about these examples:
Range("A1").HorizontalAlignment = xlCenter
Range("A1").Font.Size = 14

why do they have "=" , cant they just be:
.Font.Size(14)

is one faster then another? (in terms of how much memory it requires)

The reason I am asking all these questions is because I wish to persue a career in programming and I want to make sure I get into good practises even at the low level I am at currently (I dont exactly know where VB is in terms of difficulty/usefullness of programming language but ive found it a good start)

**Norie** · 03-26-2013, 11:30 AM

I honestly wouldn't worry about syntax affecting the speed of code or the amount of memory used.

Syntax is more likely to stop the code working.

**JosephP** · 03-26-2013, 11:30 AM

the first ones are methods/functions and take arguments, the last ones are properties to which you assign a value. there is no performance difference between the two that I am aware of